Method of making fabric and dress ornamentation, and the product thereof



March 7, 1944. W` .1 HARPHAM 2,343,614;

METHOD OF MAKING FABRIC AND kDRESS ORNAMENTATION,` I

AND THE PRODUCT THEREOF Filed Dec. 2, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I djd/wu)4MM) uw C- of /(/ATTORNEY.

March 7, 1944. W J, HARPHAM 2,343,614

METHOD 0E MAKING FABRIC AND DREss ORNAMENTATION,

AND THE PRODUCT THEREOF Filed Deo. 2, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet- 2 PatentedMar. 7, 1944 METHOD OF MAKING FABRIC AND" DRESSU ANDI THE PRODUCTORNAMENTATION,

THEREOF Walter J.v.Harpham;f Hartford,. N. J., assigner to L.. Nachman&'Son's, Philadelphia., Pa., a. partnership Applicationllecember 2,1940, S'eriatNc. 368,196-

The present invention relates toa certain-new and useful method ofmakingtabric and-dress ornamentation, and to the product" therefof,

whereby'an ornamental effect may beproduced upon dresses, blouses andfabrics' therefor, simil'- lar to what is now known'as a smocking stitch'or au smacking-stitched fabric, but which will". be more durable andnot subject to be pulled out or unravelled upon the accidental breakageof a thread, andk which will indeed be of a more attractive appearancethan the heretofore'conventional smocking stitch. ,y

Thus; in making'the smocking stitch, the cord is held in place only by achain stitchwhich can be pulled out through its entire' lengthL if. athread of the chain is pulled, thus releasing 'both the cord as well asthe pleat ofthe fabric; beneath the cord. As any sudden tension on thepleat, that is, any pull onthe fabrictransversely 'of the pleat, tendsto breakthe'chain stitch'lwhich holds both pleat and cordv in theconventional smocking stitch, the danger* of breakingxthe thread of thechain stitch is. ever'present; and any such breakage at once'`releasesthe' who-le length of cord aswell as the pleatl in theA zone 'lof the released cord.

The weakness ofv they conventional smocking stitch is furtheraccentuated by the fact that the cord' in the conventional smockingstitch does not extend'in a straight line but zig-za'gs back and forthor is arrangedl in a series, of 'closely alternating more or lesssinuous curves with'the chain stitch extending across a straight medianline intersecting the successive transverse portions of these curves,soY that thecordv itself." in

the conventional smocking stitch, is incapable of oering any resistanceto thestretcliingof'fthe fabric transversely ofthe shirring; for the;lreason that the cord does not extend in a'l straight line transverselyacross the shirring, but instead extends across the shirring in azig-zag'course.

One ofithe objects of the present invention is to form anornamentalanrlvv structural" effe'ct on (Cl. 11B-266) which will appearmore fullyrfrcm theifcllowing detailed description and' accompanyingdrawings, the present invention consists of a certain novel methodofmak-ing an ornamental effect on dresses, blouses' and on` the fabricstherefor, and also consists of' theproduct of such method and certainnovel features of methodsand structure', all of which will appear'morefullyifromv the following detailed description andV accompanyingdrawings.|

For the'purpose of illustratingthe invention, there is shown intheaccompanying drawingsone form thereof which iscatpresent preferred,since thesame has been foundin practice togive satisfactoryfand'reliableresults, althoughitis to be understoodl that thevariousinstrumentaliti'es' of which the invention consists can bevariously arranged and' organized' and that"l the invention isnotlimited to the precise arrangements and organizations of theinstrumentalitiesI as herein shown and described.

Referring to the' drawings in which like reference characters indicate.like partsv throughout:

Figure 1 representsai plan view of thel front face offa fabric accordingto one phase of the presentA invention.

Figure Zrepresents ya fragmentary perspective view ofthe frontface'ofthe embodiment shown in Figure l but on a much enlarged scale.

Figure 3 represents a plan View ofthe front face of a fabric similar tothat shown in Figulre 1 wherein the fabric is shirred andjheldin shirredposition by chain stitches but before" the super.- imposition of thestraight-line.cords.v

Figure. 4 represents a plan view of the back face of the fabric as shownin Figure 3"; kthat isl prior. to thev application` theretov of thecord-retaining, zig-zaglock stitches.

Figure 5 represents a fragmentary perspective view of the back faceofthe embodiment shown in Figure 2, onk the same scale.

Figure Grepresents a fragmentary perspective View ofV a standard Singersewing machine, showing the application thereto cf" an attachment whichmay be usedin carrying out the methodl of the present invention.

Figure? representsa top pla-nview. of the attachment of'Figure 6,' showndetached from the sewing machine tabla andv shown in approximatelyfullsize.

Figure 8` represents a section on the line 8;-8 of Figure 7.

Figure 9 represents a side elevational view of the attachment of Figures6, 7 and 8, shown on the same scale as Figure 7.

suitable depth, and with parallel lines of chainl stitches sewn acrossthe shirring to hold them in place. Thus for instance, as shown-inFigures 3 and 4, I apply the successive parallel lines of chain stitchesI across the shirring II. The lines of chain stitches III are preferablylocated in the' same lines as the lines over which the cords "I2 are tobe laid, so that in the finished product the cords I2 will entirelyconceal from view, on the outer face of the fabric, the underlying chainstitch formation.

Thereafter, the fabric is fed through a standard zig-,zag sewing machinewith the outer face of the fabric facing downwardly, and with the throatplate I3 of the sewing machine provided with a pair of holes I4corresponding in spacing to the spacing between the adjacent lines ofchain stitches I0 of each pair. Beneath the throat plate a feed tube I5is disposed, as shown in Figures 6, 8 and 9,'terminating directlybeneath the holes I4 and there fastened to the under side of the throatplate I3 by soldering I6 or by any other suitable means. LA pair ofcords I2 are fed from any suitable source (spools, bobbins, reels, etc.)into the entrance opening I'I of the guide tube I5, and extend throughsaid 4guide tube and 'finally each, one of the cords I2 is threadedthrough one of the holes I4 so as to emerge directly beneath the faceside of the pre-shirred fabric at a point in advance of the sewingneedles I8 carrying the upper threads I9 of the zig-zag stitches.

The fabric, together with the cords, is so fed to the machine indicatedin Figures 6 and 7, that the lines of pre-sewn chain stitches ID as wellas the cords I2 will be in line with the center of the lateraloscillation irrespective of the, corresponding needles I8, so that eachneedle will just straddle one of the cords I2 on its lateral zig-zagoscillations, so that each needle will pierce through the fabric, firston one side of the corresponding cord and then on the other side of thecorresponding cord;-each needle piercing the fabric once on the outsideof the double-cord row and then just in between the two cords, asindicated particularly in Figures 2'and 5.

The lower single bobbin thread or shuttle thread is shuttled through theloops and thus interlaced with the loops of the double zig-zag stitchproduced by the two needles IB carried by the needle bar 2| (or by adouble needle bar, as in some machines), so that eachvpair of adjacentcords I2 will vbe ,tied down and firmly anchored lto the fabric bydouble threaded loops I9 staggered in relation to each other on the twocords :|2, as indicated in Figure 2. The loops I9 which -are projectedthru the fabric on the outer sides a and b of the cords I2 are Adrawntoward the center c of the pair of cords by the shuttle thread 20 whichdraws them tightly together towards'the center along with the centerloops of the upper threads in the manner indicated in Figure 2.

In this manner, the staggered loops bridging the face of the cordthreads I2, along with the shuttle thread extending along the centerline c between the two cords I2, form a surface configuration over thecords and at the same time rmly anchor the cords I2 in a straight lineacross Vthe shirring II, in such a way as to xate the shirring virtuallyindependently of the lines of chain stitches I0 by which the shirringwas initially held in place, so that even if any of vthe chain stitchesI0 should break or pull out, -the shirring would be held intact by thecords I2, while the cords l2 at the same time greatly reduce, if notindeed eliminate, the practical likelihood of' breaking the chainstitches I0 by reason ofthe fact that the cords I2 are comparativelythick and strong and extend in a straight line,

`The cords I2 may be of silk, cotton, mercerized cotton, rayon, nylon orthe like, and preferably formed of 3-ply yarn intertwisted to form apronounced cord-like effect having, however, comparatively .few twistsper inch, so as not to have any successive free stretch.

Thel present invention may be embodied in other specific forms withoutdeparting from the spirit'. or essential attributes thereof, and it istherefore desired that the present embodiment be considered in allrespects as illustrative and not restrictive, reference being had to theappended claims rather than to the foregoing description to indicate thescope of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what I now claim as new and desireto be secured by Letters Patent is:

l. A method of making ornamented fabrics which comprises shirring thefabric and superimposing upon the face of the shirred fabric spacedpairs of more or less inelastic cords transversely across the shirredface of the fabric in generally straight lines, and more or lessimmovably anchoring the said pairs of cords to the said shirred fabricwith relatively inelastic thread by double zig-zag lock stitches withthe needleapplied zig-zag threads disposed on the back surface of thefabric and with needle-produced loops projected through the fabricadjacent to the cords of each pair in staggered spaced relation, saidloops being disposed alternately intermediate of and outside of saidpairs of cords, and with the Outer loops extending across said cordstowards the center and with the ends of all the loops held in saidcenter by the shuttle-applied bottom thread.

2. An ornamented reinforced shirred fabric including spaced pairs ofclosely adjacent straightline more or less inelastic cords extendingacross theface of the fabric generally transversely ofthe shirring andmore or less immovably anchored to the shirring at close intervals withrelatively inelastic thread by double Zig-zag lock stitches disposed onthe back surface of the fabric and with needle-produced loops projectingthrough the face of the fabric adjacent to said pairs of cords, saidloops being disposed alternately intermediate of and outside of saidpairs of cords with the outer loops extending inwardly across said cordstoward the center, all of said loops being held intermediate said pairsof cords by shuttle-applied thread passing through said loops.

WALTER J. HARPHAM.

